Before check-out this morning I took one last walk to the shore so that I could see the shrine and gate at sunrise. It was very quiet in town and there were only a few other people taking in the view. We caught an early ferry and began our five-hour return trip to Tokyo via Shinkansen. We had a very tight connection in Osaka but Japanese transportation punctuality kept us on time!
One of our room windows can be seen on the
top-right of the large beige building in back
It was a mostly overcast day so even though our train took us past Mt. Fuji all we could see was its broad base.
Where are you, Fuji-san?
We checked into our hotel and spent a few hours doing a little bit of shopping before heading over to Shinjuku in near-peak rush hour commuter traffic. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building has two 48-story towers and you can go to the top of one of them for free!
First, we stopped at a ramen restaurant where I had tsukemen noodles for the first time (and loved it!). Tsukemen are cold noodles that you dip into a super concentrated broth and then slurp. When all of the noodles are gone (sad face) you dilute the remaining soup from a pitcher of broth and then drink it all up.
From the top of the government building (3rd tallest in Japan) we finally could appreciate the sprawl of the world's most populous city.
The three-towered building on the right houses the Park Hyatt,
one of Tokyo's most famous hotels and the primary
filming location for Lost in Translation
Looking east we see Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower (on the left, 17th tallest in Tokyo).
Way in the back you can see Tokyo Skytree (2,080 feet),
the second tallest structure in the world
Shinjuku street level
The view from our room next to Tokyo Station
Good night!
No comments:
Post a Comment